The Wee Folks Festive Message, 2022.

Behold.  After a two year absence, it is time for us, the wee folks, to bring to you, once again, the very essence of our positive ideals.

Greetings, tis I, Geoffrey the garden gnome.  The loving husband of Fidelina, the beautiful fairy princess and proud father of the boy child, Einahalk.  

And the reason for our two year absence?  We have been looking after our human friend, our human brother, in your big world.  For Gary, over the last two and a half years, has had three major operations.  Our human brother was diagnosed with cancer.  He survived.  Our human brother has had two other major operations that have left him frustrated, scared, desperate.  In fact, since those other operations, he continues to be in extreme pain.  The medical profession, in your big world, have told him there is nothing else they can do. 

That's where us wee folks are playing a vital role in his determination to get better.  For we immerse him in the wonder, the magic, the inspirational love, that we gladly bestow upon our fragile human brother.  He understands.  He willingly embraces our values of an all different, all equal reality.  Despite such relentless pain, he will get better.  For our human brother is truly inspired.  From medical to magical.  

Now, let us inspire you, our human friend in the big world.  We know, since early in the big human year, 2020, that you have been going through a terrible time.  A terrifying time that has seemed relentless.  It might have felt like you were living in some sort of black and white horror film.  The colours, the brilliant colours, may well have become a fleeting memory.   

Come with me, come with us.  We reach out to hold your hand.  We hug you.  No more black and white.  No more gloomy, ominous clouds.  Let the colours of the rainbow absorb into your heart, your soul.  Believe.  Yes, you can sense the dawning of your indisputable awakening.  No more broken wings.  

Ah, a glorious July day in your human year, 2021.  Gary and ourselves lived in a remote English village for a year and a half.  The views are exhilarating.  Note the splashes of colour.  If you look real close, you will see us. 

Beyond the garden.  Out in pastures green.  Poppy, the talking horse, on the left and her friend, Flicker.  We have a spiritual connection with horses.  When you think about it, horses have a spiritual connection with humanity.   

During gentle summer rains, we huddled together in happy contentment.  The sound of rain.  A soothing symphony.  All part of nature's orchestra. 

 

And on a warm night in the summer of the big human year of 2021, we celebrated the simple joy of watching the glowing solar lamps. 

Soon, very soon, we would drift off to a gentle sleep.  A gentle sleep under a blanket of scented, radiant flowers. 

We now move on.  Due to Gary's ongoing health situation, we packed up from the remote village of Whiston.  Living in such a village, although a place of stunning beauty, we understood that our human brother must start anew.  We all moved back to the quaint English town of Leek in your big human time of September, 2022.  

Here we are indoors.  A gathering of joy, of hope, of love that transcends all boundaries. 

I feel such unbridled joy in the knowledge that my boy child and my wife, love me as I love them. 

In our new home, in Gary's new home, back in Leek, we gathered around the beckoning fireplace.  The festive season is upon us.  Time to reflect.  Time to continue to reach out and show our concern, our caring, our love for you.  For you and all the folks in the big human world.

We miss Penny the Jack Russell dog.  Yet, her spirit will forever live on.  Gary and his son, Tristan, cherish her memory.  Play, Penny Play.  Play with your friends in the fields of freedom on the other side of the Rainbow Bridge.        

The sun sets on the sleepy little town of Leek.  Our message to you is simple yet profound.  Celebrate just how remarkable you are.  Stay well clear of those who only look for the bad in you and ignore the good in you.  Celebrate that all different, all equal world you wish to be so. 

The interaction between our world and your world, grows with every passing moment.  With every beat of our hearts, your heart.  

The new beginning is on the horizon.  A fresh, hopeful start.  The big human year of 2023, has almost arrived.  Indeed, together, in determined strength, in unity, we will make this a year of peaceful triumph.  Sense it.  The jubilation.  The colours of the rainbow are returning. 

Positive Distractions For Christmas 2020.

It's been a year since I posted. I've missed the blogging community and the diverse interaction that I cherish.  I've been overwhelmed with health issues.  Two major surgeries in less than two months has taken its toll on me.  I'm still experiencing a lot of pain.  Yet, somehow, through the pain, I focus on the positive distractions that give me comfort.     

This has been the most awful of years.  Compounded by the restrictions, the chaos and confusion that has dominated our lives in the year 2020.

Hello to you.  I will now share some positive distractions that have helped me so much. 

And there we are.  Christmas 2020.  The positive distractions of a glowing fire, a Christmas tree, a couple of wee folks, a photo of my son when he was a young boy.   Plus, of course, a photo reminder of the spirit of Penny the Jack Russell dog and modest internet superstar.

The peace and joy that I embrace.  The wee folks have taught me many a lesson.  About unconditional, non-judgemental love. 

Fidelina, the beautiful fairy princess, her husband, Geoffrey the garden gnome and their boychild, Einahalk, wish for you, for me, for all of us, a wondrous time now and into the future.  

I fondly recall the gathering of the wee folks one wintry evening back at my old enchanted garden. 

I took this photo on the afternoon of December 23, 2020.  Two pigeons perched on the scaffolding just outside my bedroom window.  

Ah, the last remnants of the setting sun as darkness blankets the sleepy little town of Leek.

Bless the memory of Penny.  So content with a trio of garden gnomes.  Her spirit will keep me company as it's wise that I spend Christmas day on my own.  On my own but grateful for all the positive distractions.  

May you have a peaceful Christmas.  Let us rejoice in all that is good and focus on our positive distractions. 

A Peaceful, Positive Christmas, 2019.

Fidelina, the beautiful fairy princess, her husband, Geoffrey the garden gnome and their boy child, Einahalk, along with rest of the wee folks and me, their human friend, wish you a peaceful, positive Christmas, 2019. 

Rhododendron Bush.

The night that our beloved Penny the Jack Russell passed away, is a night that will be forever etched in the hearts of my son and I.  Her passing impacted on the both of us in ways that I believe has made us better human beings.  Penny taught us lessons of pure love that shall always resonate.

When it came to the spreading of her ashes, my son wanted to be alone.  Alone with his thoughts and the magic of Penny's spirit.  I respected his decision. Tristan spread a portion of her ashes at the places that meant so much to the both of them.  The date was April 6, 2019.  Slightly over five months since she went to sleep.

He then brought over the remainder of her ashes for me to scatter.  On April 9, 2019, I spread her ashes in the wind.  I went to the places so symbolic of Penny's buoyant enthusiasm for the allurement of the great outdoors.

April 9, 2019, was a breezy day.  Her ashes whirled and settled in the open field.  A field so fitting for the inquisitive nature of a curious dog.  I sensed her still playing, still running, in that open field.

I kept some of her ashes to scatter back at the gardens of the place I live.  On the journey home, I wandered through the local park.  I noted a rhododendron bush in full, magnificent bloom.

I felt compelled, felt an overwhelming desire to get closer to the rhododendron bush.  I lovingly sprinkled, in a circular motion, some of Penny's ashes around the roots.

I showed the above photo to my son and told him of how I'd had this powerful, spiritual sensation that seemed to emanate from the rhododendron bush.  My son recognised the bush.  Until then, I had no idea that, three days earlier, part of his ceremonial journey had led him to the park.  Tristan felt compelled, felt an overwhelming desire to get closer to the rhododendron bush.  He lovingly sprinkled, in a circular motion, some of Penny's ashes around the roots.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019, marked one year since the passing of Penny.  My son and I think about her lot.  Yes, we both shed tears.  Yet through those tears, there be joy for all the love she shared with us.  There is no finality.  Penny's love lives on forever.  The sanctuary of the rhododendron bush is such a special place.  A special place that makes us understand Penny's spirit, Penny's love, is watching over us.

Thank you, Penny.  We love you.

I Left In An Ambulance And Came Back In A Police Car.

Way back when, as in May 12, 2019, I wrote a post that stated, "I shall be returning soon with what I believe will be the most powerful and spiritual post I ever wrote."  

Then life and a whole series of ongoing challenges, got in the way.  I'm battling with chronic fatigue.  Yet, paradoxically, I'm struggling to get any semblance of a decent, uninterrupted sleep.  Awake, when I should be asleep.  Asleep, when I should be awake.  A scheduling nightmare, as I constantly feel lethargic and nauseous, both physically and mentally.   The frustration of being like this has overwhelmed every facet of my life.

Here's a typical night.  I go to bed around one in the morning and at nine in the morning, I'm still awake.  I have dude problems.  An enlarged prostate that brings on the urge to frequently attempt to urinate.  I lie in bed and five minutes later, I'm heading to the bathroom.  I go back to bed and five minutes later, I'm heading to the bathroom.  This continues all through the night and morning.  Eventually, I manage to somehow get some fleeting sleep, even though the pain is ever-present.

The hospital has run a series of tests on me.   And yet, it seems I'm going around in circles with the hospital.  The consultant at the urology department will be seeing me again in early November.  I dread to think that the results of the latest tests will mean that I have to have even more tests.  I'm sure I need surgery.  In the meantime, because I don't want to travel in such pain, I've had to delay my latest trip back to see in my friends and family in British Columbia.

I'm having a tough time coping with it all.  I've tried exercising. I have a routine where I go out for a late night stroll around the retirement living apartment building that I live in.

The late night stroll gives me moments of peaceful reflection.  Peaceful reflection until I head back into my apartment. 

Just gone midnight, Saturday, August 17, 2019.  I was out having my usual walkabout.  I was on the sidewalk right near the apartment building.   Good-natured banter ensued with a couple of care workers who were chatting to me from the apartment building's office window.  It was a nice, pleasant conversation.  

I realised that some young man was now very close to my personal space.  He was very intoxicated.  He started to become very aggressive and started pushing up against me.  Despite that, I tried to maintain an air of pleasantness with the rather unsavoury character.  

The two care workers who had noticed that the situation was turning for the worse, left the office and came outside.  I told the young man that I was going back inside.  He proceeded to punch me in the face.  I swung back in self-defence.  What happened immediately after that was just a blur. 

It transpired, as I was told later, that my skull was cracked violently against the pavement.  I was knocked out and one of the care workers was assaulted by that outrageous idiot.  

At two in the morning, my senses came back to some level of normality.  I noticed I was sitting in the office that the care workers had been chatting to me from.  Before me sat two police officers.  I was wondering why they were there because I had no recollection of being knocked out.   The two gentleman police officers got statements from the two care workers.  They said they would interview me on Saturday afternoon in my apartment.

The interview never happened because I was taken away in an ambulance around three in the morning.  Upon being assessed, I was told I had a fractured skull and a small bleed on my brain.  The hospital wanted to keep me in for observation for 48 hours.  

After being at the hospital for about 12 hours, a very pleasant lady police officer came and interviewed me.  I recalled the incident as best I could.  While she was interviewing me, the head doctor came in and asked if it was okay to have me perform a number of tests.  Tests that concluded that I was well enough to go home.  However, I was told by the head doctor that if my symptoms took a turn for the worse, such as my mild headache, to immediately phone for an emergency ambulance. 

With that and most conveniently, it turned out the lady police officer was going to my apartment building to check out the CCTV footage.  This meant I got to go in her police car back to where I live.  

It was and I know this might seem weird, a very humorous trip back to my place.  She was brilliant and despite it all, we had a good laugh.  That helped an awful lot.  I'm grateful to her.

Unfortunately, the CCTV footage was inconclusive.  However, there are several charges against that young guy.  In fact, when he assaulted that care worker and me, he had just taken off from breaking and entering a house just up the road from the apartment building.  The police were already looking for him when he attacked the two of us.  He was arrested about ten minutes after he attacked us.

As of now, his day in court to give his plea, has been delayed.  There were even more charges against him that have to be sorted out.

Thus, we wait.  During this waiting time, I somehow mustered up enough energy to fill in a couple of forms that the police sent me.  Forms I delayed filling in because they were a reminder of what happened.  I have found that by not really thinking about it has been a good coping strategy. 

I'm frustrated.  The events that have been plaguing my life has been a severe challenge to my mental health.  A severe challenge to my clinical depression.  I've been jittery.  I've been anxious.  But, I'm proud.  So very proud.  I have refused to allow these events to completely sabotage my right to a peaceful, positive life. I am determined to to work through this.  I visualise a much better life ahead.  I still go out for my usual stroll.  

I hope you will understand why I've been very much in the blogging background.  Until I get better, just interacting with your good self, is something that feels daunting.  Besides, I've been told by the hospital to limit the amount of time using my computer due to the eye strain that could impact upon my working through the fractured skull situation.

Thank you for reading, by my standards, a rather lengthy blog post.

The post I was going to do will now be published on October 23 of this year.  I will be combining two ideals into the one post.

One-Hip Wonder.

When I published this post, Thank You, Penny. , my son, Tristan, was deeply moved by the story of Penny's love of life and the pure, innocent love she willingly shared.  However, my son mentioned to me that I'd overlooked one very notable time in her life.

Penny was only about two to three months old.  A little puppy who loved to go on walking adventures.  One evening, we realised that something was terribly wrong with her ability to walk.  She was limping very badly.

The next day, we took Penny to the vets.  He did an x-ray on her rear left leg.  To the utter astonishment of Tristan and I, the x-ray revealed that she had shattered bone fragments down the entire leg.  It was amazing she could even walk.  She must of been in an awful amount of pain. The vet explained that small dogs, such as a Jack Russell, can be prone to degenerative bone disease.

The vet cancelled his lunch and operated on her immediately.  The bone fragments and the hip bone in her left back leg were removed.  We were informed that muscle would replace the hip bone.  We were told that after a few months, we'd hardly even realise that she had her hip bone removed.  That was mostly true, but sometimes, she would have a slight limp. 

The vet placed her hip bone in a small container which Tristan has kept as a reflective keepsake.    

And thus, as Tristan said to me recently, "Penny was a one-hip wonder."  In the above video, you can notice her slight limp.

I shall be returning soon with what I believe will be the most powerful and spiritual post I ever wrote.

Thank you.  In peace, Gary. 

Breaking Through The Blogger Burnout.

My friend, yes I know, my blog over the last couple of years has been bordering on non-existent.  My lack of writing and interaction with you has been a most frustrating time.

These have been challenging moments.  I'm still struggling to cope with the loss of our beloved Penny.  Just like my son, I do my utmost to focus on all the positive love she brought to our lives.  Thus, between the tears shed, I rejoice in knowing how blessed we both were.  Blessed in having her share the pureness of her unconditional love. 

I shall endeavour to return soon.  Thank you, my friend. 

July 18, 2006. My son, Tristan at 17 and Penny at 5 years old. Treasured, loving memories of a magical past embraced.